Taylor Frankie Paul ‘Bachelorette’ controversy, explained : NPR
Taylor Frankie Paul attends the Oscars on Sunday, a week ahead of schedule Bachelor first.
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The new season of the ABC reality series The bachelorette has been fully filmed and is set to premiere on Sunday. But parent company Disney now says the broadcast won’t be as planned.
The decision to shelve the show’s 22nd season was made Thursday, after TMZ released a video showing future Bachelorette Taylor Frankie Paul physically attacking her then-boyfriend Dakota Mortensen in 2023.
“In light of the new video that just aired today, we have made the decision not to move forward with the new season of ‘The Bachelorette’ at this time, and our goal is to support the family,” Disney Entertainment said in a statement reported by the Associated Press. New York Times and others.
The video, filmed by Mortensen, appears to show Paul punching, grabbing and throwing three bar stools at her. A child can be heard crying on the couch nearby, and Mortensen at one point says, “Your daughter is sitting right there.” »
Paul has three children: two with her ex-husband Tate Paul and one, born in 2024, with Mortensen. She confirmed their three-year on-and-off relationship ended in May 2025. NPR has reached out to both of their reps.
In a statement shared with NBC News, Paul’s rep called the video “the latest episode of [Mortensen’s] endless, desperate, attention-seeking and destructive campaign to harm Taylor without any regard for the consequences for their child. »
Paul’s rep said People in a statement that Paul is “exploring all of her options, seeking support and preparing to own and share her story,” and “very grateful for ABC’s support as she prioritizes the safety and security of her family.”
Mortenese said Weekly Entertainment that he categorically denies “these baseless claims about me and our relationship,” calling it a “deeply upsetting situation.”
“I am focused on our son and his safety and I hope Taylor does the same,” he added.
NPR has not independently verified the authenticity of the video, which TMZ said was used as evidence in a legal proceeding. But it matches the Herriman, Utah, town police department’s description of an incident in February 2023 that led to Paul’s arrest for assault, criminal mischief and committing domestic violence in the presence of a child.
Court records obtained by NPR show Paul agreed to plead guilty to third-degree aggravated assault and was serving 36 months of probation. When asked about the incident on a 2025 podcast, she acknowledged that her children were present but said she “never hurt” her daughter and “never did anything intentionally with my children.”
The couple’s turbulent relationship was a central plot point on the other reality TV show that made Paul famous: The Secret Lives of Mormon Wiveswhich premiered in 2024 and just released its fourth season last week.
Earlier this week, People and other entertainment outlets reported that filming on the show’s fifth season was halted due to reports of an investigation into domestic violence allegations involving Paul and Mortensen – presumably a separate incident, although details are scarce.
An anonymous spokesperson for Utah’s Draper City Police Department said People that “allegations were made in both directions” and that “contact was made with the parties involved” on February 24 and 25, but declined to give further details while the investigation is ongoing. NPR reached out to Draper police but did not receive a response in time for publication.
There are many things we still don’t know. But if you’re just listening, we can help you fill in some of the gaps.
(L to R) Jennifer Affleck, Mayci Neeley, Mikayla Matthews, Taylor Frankie Paul and Miranda McWhorter of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives attend an event at SiriusXM Studios in May 2025.
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Who are we talking about?
At the center of the controversy is Taylor Frankie Paul.
She is a 31-year-old influencer best known as the self-proclaimed creator of “MomTok,” a Utah-based friend group of Mormon moms that rose to fame on social media in 2020.
They posted dance trends, beauty routines, skits and lifestyle videos on TikTok, promoting a more modern side of Mormonism and challenging its traditional gender roles. But it didn’t take long for controversy to erupt, in the form of the “soft swinging scandal” of 2022.
THE What scandal?
Paul revealed in a livestreamed video in May 2022 that she and her then-husband, Tate Paul, had “sweet swings” with other couples in their social circle. She described it as “when you connect but don’t follow through.”
“The deal was like, as long as we were both there and we saw it and knew it, everything was fine, and the second that happened without each other, then you were out of the deal,” she said. “And that’s what I did.”
Paul and her then-husband, who had an open relationship, divorced later that year (she called the swinging situation “the tip of the iceberg” of their problems). Her confession also caused divisions within the MomTok community, as she had claimed – without naming names – that other members were involved in the swinging group.
When did Mortensen enter (and exit) the picture?
Paul and Mortensen confirmed their relationship on TikTok in September 2022, several months after she hinted at it online. It quickly became rocky.
The couple split in December, then got back together in January 2023, a month before the domestic violence incident that led to Paul’s arrest. The relationship, although turbulent, continued and Paul announced her pregnancy in September. Their son, Ever, was born in March 2024.
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, the documentary-style show following Paul and his #MomTok circle, premiered on Hulu later that year.
The first season ended with the birth of Paul’s son and suspenseful claims of Mortensen’s alleged infidelity raised by another cast member, which he denied. The two split in December 2024, but sparked reconciliation rumors the following spring. Their dynamic has remained the focus of the TV show, including in the most recent season.
What about those Mormon wives?
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, alias SLOMWfollows eight Mormon moms-slash-influencers (and their families) as they navigate marriages, friendships, faith and, increasingly, the personal and professional pressures of fame.
“I feel like it’s had a positive impact and shows people that they don’t have to be perfect to be part of a religion and to be close to God and Jesus,” Macyi Neeley told NPR last year.
Filming for the first season began in 2023, although it was interrupted and resumed after Paul’s arrest.
The first episode of its first season, which premiered in September 2024, shows Paul trying to make things right with the moms after the swinger scandal. It also covers the domestic violence incident, with body camera footage of police arresting a tearful Paul outside the house (but no footage of what happened inside).
Hulu said the series premiere was the most-watched unscripted debut season of 2024, surpassing The Kardashians and leading to a rapid renewal of several episodes.
SLOMW has maintained a near-constant filming schedule, releasing two 10-episode seasons in 2025 and another earlier this month. Season four covers fall 2025, as Paul prepared to film The bachelorette.
The show’s popularity has catapulted many of its stars, not just Paul, into other high-profile roles. Two cast members, Whitney Leavitt and Jennifer Affleck, appeared on Dancing with the stars. Leavitt now stars as Roxie in Chicago on Broadway and helped the show break its box office record this week.
How did Paul become The bachelorette?
Paul confirmed that his relationship with Mortensen was officially over in a September 2025 episode of the series Call her daddy podcast. It was also there that she announced that she had been chosen as THE Single.
It was an unusual choice, not only because of Paul’s complicated relationship with her ex and her notoriety, but also because she had never participated in the previous event. Bachelor franchise. This is a first: every Bachelorette so far has been a fan-favorite contestant from the season of The Bachelor before that.
Disney is the parent company of Hulu (SLOW) and ABC (The bachelorette). The choice to bring in an existing influencer-slash-reality star was seen as a move to revitalize the Bachelorwhich has experienced a sharp decline in audience numbers in recent years. Ironically, this is partly due to casting controversies, including unexpected post-season revelations about contestants on both sides of the rose.
What’s next for each show?
ABC plans to air a rebroadcast of American idol on the place du spectacle on Sunday. It is unclear if Paul’s season The bachelorette will never be broadcast. NPR has contacted Disney for comment.
We also do not know when or if the filming of SLOMW will resume. At a press event for THE Bachelor Earlier this week, Paul opened up about the production pause, saying People: “my heart hurts to see this, to go through this, especially at the moment.”
“It’s a difficult time and it’s unfortunate,” she continued. “I’m struggling, for sure, but at the same time I feel like if I don’t show up, I’m just giving away these opportunities and not appreciating what we’ve been working on and something super exciting that’s coming up.”
